Wednesday, April 6, 2011

艾未未 Love the Future 爱未来 Chinese Artist for Free Speech

Love the Future Indeed: In China, where countless government agents patrol sites behind the Great Firewall for any offending political content (and where telephone conversations are so closely monitored that some trigger phrases can immediately disconnect the call), it takes some creativity to voice opposition. The fact that even sympathetic publications universally self-censor to avoid reprisals is a sad problem too. So to rally citizens to protest the detention of Ai Weiwei, online commentators have taken up the slogan "Love the Future," (爱未来) which both resembles and sounds similar to Ai's name (艾未未). Calls range from the energetic ("To love the future is to love yourself. Fill the microblogs with love. Fill the motherland with love. Donate your love to the future of the motherland.") to the despondent ("I really don't dare believe that in this society, even love for the future can disappear"). [China Digital Times]

excerpt:
"China warned the international community it had "no right to interfere" in the case of outspoken artist Ai Weiwei, who has been detained for investigation of unspecified economic crimes. Foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei confirmed a state media report that Ai, an avant-garde artist taken into custody in Beijing on Sunday as the government pursues a heavy crackdown on dissent, was the subject of a police probe.
"Ai Weiwei is under investigation on suspicion of economic crimes," Hong told reporters, refusing to comment on the nature of the alleged crimes. "Other countries have no right to interfere."

In unusually blunt public comments, Huntsman -- who will soon leave his post -- saluted Ai, jailed Nobel peace laureate Liu Xiaobo and others who "challenge the Chinese government to serve the public in all cases and at all times".

China typically uses charges such as subversion to put away government critics, as it did in Liu's case, but has also previously leveled accusations of various economic crimes such as tax-related offences to silence others. ...
On Thursday, it said reining in provocative people like Ai was more important that allowing him to speak freely. ...
The government has been extremely skittish following the mysterious online calls for people to gather each Sunday around China in peaceful demonstrations....

.No protests have been reported, but scores of dissidents, activists and rights lawyers have been rounded up in recent weeks..."

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The Spirit In Which It Is Given

Well, there is a lot of pain and sorrow, sacrifice, rage and insanity, anxiety and confusion. And that is just the first 5 minutes.Please accept these stories and posts in the spirit in which they are given- to edify, to lift, to lighten, to validate, to weep.Because also: love and sacrifice, wisdom and justice, clarity and gifts. Sometimes it takes more than 5 minutes.Today I added K's story to this blog. She was a little 18 year old when she was deceived into a night of betrayal and crime; trafficked; bought and sold. it is profoundly disturbing that her betrayer was another woman, a wolf in sheep's clothing. hang in there, everybody. Everything is OK in the end. If it isn't ok, it's not the end.